Cover via Amazon "Robin Hood" is an action movie that was released in May of 2010. It is rated PG-13.
I probably read "Robin Hood" for the first time when I was around 10 years old. I then re-read it a number of times over the next few years. The release of "Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves" was a red letter day for me and I enjoyed that film a lot. The latest version, the "Robin Hood" we are discussing today, has a number of twists that made it even more interesting as I tried to guess what would happen.
Robin Longstride (Russel Crowe) has been fighting for years in the Crusades with King Richard's army. During the last siege before returning to England, King Richard is killed with a crossbow bolt in the neck (first big surprise). His right hand man Robert Locksley is tasked with bringing the crown back to London in order to have it presented to the next king, Richard's brother John. John's boyhood friend and trusted companion Sir Godfrey turns out to be a traitor and is actively helping King Philip of France to take advantage of England's weakness. He and a number of French soldiers ambush Robert Locksley and his escort before they can leave France. He wants to capture the crown but is thwarted by Robin Longstride and his friends who have left the army and are trying to find their own way home ahead of the army. They discover the ambush and in turn surprise the French soldiers, killing most of them and wounding Godfrey who escapes.
Locksley manages to live long enough to give Robin his sword and asks him to return it to his father, the Lord of Nottingham. Robin and his friends pretend to be knights in order to get back to England. He presents the crown in London and then rides off to Nottingham. When he gets there the Lord Locksley asks him to impersonate his returned son in order to protect the inheritance of dead son's wife, the Lady Marian (Cate Blanchett). He agrees and with the reluctant help of Marian he soon proves that he can be of great help to them all.
Godfrey is commissioned by John to go the the northern Baronies to collect back taxes. These areas have already been impoverished by taxes to pay for the Crusades and they don't have the money to pay what is owed. Godfrey leads his English men into another ambush where they are all killed and replaced with French soldiers. They then proceed to attack cities and towns to not only collect money but to rouse the anger of the barons against John in the hope that they will commit to civil war.
Godfrey learns that Robin is in Nottingham and leads his men to attack the town. Godfrey kills the old lord and has his men put many of the townspeople, including Marian into a building and set it on fire. Robin, who had been out of town getting the support of the barons, returns with an army that kills the French invaders and learns that the French fleet will be landing soon. The army of the barons and the king join forces to meet the fleet and repel the invading army. While John actually joins the fighting, when the French surrender the English soldiers cheer for Robin. John becomes jealous and breaks his promise to provide greater freedoms to his people and naming Robin an outlaw. Robin and Marian then make their way into Sherwood Forest.
My Recommendation
I liked the movie and the unexpected twists that were written into the script. Seeing Robin start out as a regular guy and then becoming Robin of Locksley through deception was a neat rewrite from the book and made the entire film more interesting. The action scenes were great with Robin actually using a sword almost as much as he use his bow. The final battle on the beach was not historically correct but who cares? It was well done and we did get to see Robin pull off a spectacular bow shot to finally put an end to Godfrey.
I've admired Cate Blanchett ever since her portrayal of Katherine Hepburn in "The Aviator". She was definitely the best Maid Marian I've seen although technically she was no longer a "Maid" but a married woman. Her character did not mind jumping in to plow a field, shoe a horse, or pull livestock from the mud. I didn't really feel any chemistry between Cate Blanchett and Russel Crowe but then again, it wasn't a romantic comedy so I don't really mind that. In fact, I never mind that as much as my lovely wife does.
Overall I have no problem recommending the movie to the guys or ladies. The ladies get to see Mr. Crowe with his shirt off and the guys get to see him shoot arrows into the bad guys. That's a good trade-off, right?
I probably read "Robin Hood" for the first time when I was around 10 years old. I then re-read it a number of times over the next few years. The release of "Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves" was a red letter day for me and I enjoyed that film a lot. The latest version, the "Robin Hood" we are discussing today, has a number of twists that made it even more interesting as I tried to guess what would happen.
Robin Longstride (Russel Crowe) has been fighting for years in the Crusades with King Richard's army. During the last siege before returning to England, King Richard is killed with a crossbow bolt in the neck (first big surprise). His right hand man Robert Locksley is tasked with bringing the crown back to London in order to have it presented to the next king, Richard's brother John. John's boyhood friend and trusted companion Sir Godfrey turns out to be a traitor and is actively helping King Philip of France to take advantage of England's weakness. He and a number of French soldiers ambush Robert Locksley and his escort before they can leave France. He wants to capture the crown but is thwarted by Robin Longstride and his friends who have left the army and are trying to find their own way home ahead of the army. They discover the ambush and in turn surprise the French soldiers, killing most of them and wounding Godfrey who escapes.
Locksley manages to live long enough to give Robin his sword and asks him to return it to his father, the Lord of Nottingham. Robin and his friends pretend to be knights in order to get back to England. He presents the crown in London and then rides off to Nottingham. When he gets there the Lord Locksley asks him to impersonate his returned son in order to protect the inheritance of dead son's wife, the Lady Marian (Cate Blanchett). He agrees and with the reluctant help of Marian he soon proves that he can be of great help to them all.
Godfrey is commissioned by John to go the the northern Baronies to collect back taxes. These areas have already been impoverished by taxes to pay for the Crusades and they don't have the money to pay what is owed. Godfrey leads his English men into another ambush where they are all killed and replaced with French soldiers. They then proceed to attack cities and towns to not only collect money but to rouse the anger of the barons against John in the hope that they will commit to civil war.
Godfrey learns that Robin is in Nottingham and leads his men to attack the town. Godfrey kills the old lord and has his men put many of the townspeople, including Marian into a building and set it on fire. Robin, who had been out of town getting the support of the barons, returns with an army that kills the French invaders and learns that the French fleet will be landing soon. The army of the barons and the king join forces to meet the fleet and repel the invading army. While John actually joins the fighting, when the French surrender the English soldiers cheer for Robin. John becomes jealous and breaks his promise to provide greater freedoms to his people and naming Robin an outlaw. Robin and Marian then make their way into Sherwood Forest.
My Recommendation
I liked the movie and the unexpected twists that were written into the script. Seeing Robin start out as a regular guy and then becoming Robin of Locksley through deception was a neat rewrite from the book and made the entire film more interesting. The action scenes were great with Robin actually using a sword almost as much as he use his bow. The final battle on the beach was not historically correct but who cares? It was well done and we did get to see Robin pull off a spectacular bow shot to finally put an end to Godfrey.
I've admired Cate Blanchett ever since her portrayal of Katherine Hepburn in "The Aviator". She was definitely the best Maid Marian I've seen although technically she was no longer a "Maid" but a married woman. Her character did not mind jumping in to plow a field, shoe a horse, or pull livestock from the mud. I didn't really feel any chemistry between Cate Blanchett and Russel Crowe but then again, it wasn't a romantic comedy so I don't really mind that. In fact, I never mind that as much as my lovely wife does.
Overall I have no problem recommending the movie to the guys or ladies. The ladies get to see Mr. Crowe with his shirt off and the guys get to see him shoot arrows into the bad guys. That's a good trade-off, right?
Howard Ralston is an avid movie-goer and writer. He finally realized that he could combine these two passions and now writes movie reviews on Movie Crasher. Look for more reviews of action movies on his site.
